Karangahake Gorge Walk

What: The Karangahake Gorge walk is now part of the Hauraki Rail Trail; popular with both walkers and cyclists.  We explored this great track by walking the 14km return track from Waikino Visitor Centre to Karangahake.

When: Any time of year.  Warm weather is perfect to incorporate this walk with a trip to the nearby Waihi Beach.

Where: This track is situated between Paeroa and Waihi.  The track can be accessed from either Karangahake or Waikino.  As we wanted to cover a bit of distance, we decided to start at Waikino Visitor centre and walk back towards Karangahake.

How...

We started this walk at about 9am in the morning, heading towards Karangahake.  After a very short walk, we arrived at the site of the Victoria Battery.  Pictures and information provided on signposts bring the area to life and provide an insight of what the area looked like in the bustling gold-mining days. 

After a short stop at the Victoria Battery, we then walked at a steady pace for an hour until we reached the popular rail tunnel.  The track until this spot was flat and easy, which would make it perfect to get out on the bikes with family or friends.  The tunnel itself was long and eerie and after walking almost a kilometre underground we arrived at Karangahake village.

From here, there are many places to explore and we decided to get back underground and see the 'underground pump station' and the 'windows walk'.  If you decide to do this walk, it is well worth checking out these places - so bring a torch!  It is a short walk from Karangahake to see these awesome places, and well worth it to follow the tracks through the old mining tunnels. 

The 'windows walk' is exactly how it sounds.  A walk through the mining tunnels with opportunities to look out through the 'windows' of the cliff face over the scenery of rapids and native bush. 

We then headed back to Karangahake for a quick break before doing the return trip back through the rail tunnel and gravel track to the car.  Coffee and cake at a cafe at nearby Waihi made for the perfect end to a great morning of exploring this awesome area.

Karangahake Gorge is approxiamately 1h 15min from Hamilton.